Contents Background .......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 3 General Comments .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 3 Committee 4 Wagga Priority Projects ................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Glenfield Road Upgrades .............................................................................................................................................................................. 5 Gobbagombalin Bridge Duplication ............................................................................................................................................................... 6 Alternate Route ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 7 Active Travel Plan ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 9 Response to the Peer Review and Summary of Findings Report ....................................................................................................................... 10 Pedestrians .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 10 Bike Riding ..................................................................................................................................................................................................... 12 Public Transport ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 15 Private Cars.................................................................................................................................................................................................... 16 Parking ........................................................................................................................................................................................................... 20 Freight ............................................................................................................................................................................................................ 21 Land Use ........................................................................................................................................................................................................ 22 Projects for Consideration .................................................................................................................................................................................. 25 Appendix A – C4W Alternate Route Options ...................................................................................................................................................... 27 Appendix B – Images ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 28 Submission to the WWITS – March 2017 Background The Committee 4 Wagga is a member based, self-funded, independent organisation representing 65 member organisations that collectively employ over 4,500 people. C4W works with the community, local businesses and all levels of government to champion positive change for a better city and seeks to achieve the following outcomes: Support and promote the city to ensure accelerated population growth Identify and implement opportunities that will enhance our cultural, social, business and economic prosperity Provide a platform for community, business and government collaboration to effect positive change C4W have participated in consultation and provided both written and verbal feedback to the Integrated Transport Strategy process at various intervals. The following submission responds to the strategies and projects identified within the Peer Review and Summary of Findings Report published on Council’s behalf by MRCagney on February 20, 2017. General Comments C4W is supportive of Council undertaking the development of an integrated transport strategy and believes the document can be an important resource to facilitate growth and progress. In a recent survey of C4W members, the Integrated Transport Strategy was rated as the city’s most important strategic document. This emphasises the need to produce a collaborative, cohesive document planning for the infrastructure that is essential to support, sustain and ultimately encourage the city’s growth. Further to this, over 60% of survey respondents rate the provision of infrastructure to match and facilitate growth as the city’s biggest challenge. The process developing the document has to date been fragmented and poorly managed, however C4W is hopeful recent consultation and feedback can result in a strong document with positive outcomes for Wagga Wagga. C4W is supportive of the broad land use strategies described within the Peer Review Report however does not believe the report has proposed strong, practical solutions and strategies to resolve either current traffic issues or long term opportunities within the city. Significant congestion at key locations is currently constraining the city’s growth and it is important to recognise the need to plan and prepare to resolve these issues within documents such as the Integrated Transport Strategy. Submission to the WWITS – March 2017 It is acknowledged the Peer Review Report is a summary of findings, and not necessarily designed to identify projects at a micro level. This is however a significant concern for C4W and appears to be a gap in the published documents to date. Without aligning the strategies within the report to projects and priorities there is no clear direction with regards to the practical implementation, and the strategy will be adopted with no accountability or follow through on tangible outcomes. It is worth noting examples of Integrated Transport Strategies undertaken in cities such as Wodonga (Vic), Geraldton (WA) and the City of Ryde (NSW) featuring priority projects aligned to the strategy. Further to this, the Wagga Wagga Integrated Movement Study published in 2008 listed a significant number of projects and recommendations - the overwhelming majority (85%) have not been actioned. While it is acknowledged over the course of time traffic conditions change and solutions will evolve with best practice, it is concerning the 2008 report was adopted by Council for implementation and from a desktop analysis only 15% of the locations identified have received some form of improvement, in most case the works completed have departed from the treatment recommended within the strategy. It should be noted C4W does not necessarily support all recommendations and projects listed within the 2008 study, however does believe this demonstrates careful consideration, commitment and follow through is required when adopting strategies of this significance. C4W believes the Integrated Transport Strategy should be developed in the city’s best interests and based on the best outcomes required to facilitate effective movement around the city. If this underlying principle is maintained it is likely the strategy will consist of recommendations that conflict with the views of other levels of Government. This strategy is for the city of Wagga Wagga first and foremost and should not allow the mix of road ownership and maintenance responsibilities shared between Local Government and the NSW Government to distract and influence the recommendations. Rather, recommendations for the best, most effective solution to integrated movement in the city should be identified within the strategy, followed by determining the path required to achieve the outcomes. A significant concern of C4W’s in relation to transport planning and strategy is lack of long-term vision. The Integrated Transport Strategy proposes to consider and address the city’s movement issues and opportunities through until 2043. While the recommendations relating to land use contained within the Peer Review Report will have an impact in the long term, the strategies and recommendations published to date do not identify specific transport issues and opportunities over a 20, 30 or 50 year planning horizon. The Peer Review Report provides limited solutions to a small number of current, short-term issues, however does not account for the inevitable growth of Wagga Wagga to 80,000 people by 2036 and 100,000 by 2060. It is therefore vitally important to plan for this growth by preserving road corridors, acquiring land, and setting aside adequate funding sources for future use. The strategy should also consider long term national projects likely to impact Wagga Wagga, such as the Inland Rail project and the High Speed Rail project. Forward planning and commitment will ensure the city is